Sweet yet Sour
by TemporaryName1212
Summary: A mysterious girl suddenly appeared in front of Gumball's camera, he took the opportunity to get the perfect shot, but little did he know, that the photograph will change his life.
1. Chapter 1: The girl under the blossom

Chapter 1: The girl under the blossom

It all started on a one sunny day; Gumball holds his digital Camera in his hands tightly, scanning his surroundings to get a good shot of whatever he could find interesting.

Though for someone who doesn't know him, it might be a little strange to see a person in a hospital gown walking around with his camera.

He's been in that hospital for a while now, rehabilitating after an accident that almost took his life, and put him in a coma for over a year.

What that accident might be, still remained as a vague memory; he remembered drowning, and then nothing.

The camera made a clicking sound once more, and a beautiful scenery of cherry blossom tree appeared at the screen.

This was the form of rehabilitation that the doctor suggested his family, since photography is Gumball's hobby.

He remembered his room being littered with the pictures that he had taken since when he was a young boy, and wondered if his parents still haven't removed them, even after a year of him being asleep in that hospital.

The wind blew on his face, and made him go back to what he was doing.

Gumball raised the camera onto his eyes, and was prepared to take another shot on the scenery, until he noticed something different.

There was a person standing by the trees, but isn't visible from the camera's current perspective.

Gumball moves closer to that person, but not too close enough that the person will instantly notice him being there.

He zooms in on that person; the wind blew once more, causing the leaves from the cherry blossom tree to fall, as it glides around the girl.

Gumball noticed that the girl was wearing a hospital gown, he thought that it was a normal dress at first, since it was being blown to the side, causing the ribbon on its back to be barely visible.

While the girl's body being yellowish-orange, made him realize how extra-ordinary that view was, and he needed to take a shot of capturing it.

* * *

A clicking sound coming from the camera can be heard, it was rare for Gumball to take a photo of someone, but he didn't want to miss the opportunity of capturing the emotions being portrait by the girl.

There was a mix of happiness and sadness being emphasized, and the girl is the center of that photograph.

The sound was enough for the girl to noticed him, and the she quickly turned her attention to Gumball's camera.

"Did you just…?" The girl said.

Her face turns red, as if she didn't want to get photographed by someone she did not know.

"I-" Gumball said, but before he can even speak, the girl quickly ran away from him.

"think you're pretty…" he continued, but the girl was already too far, and his tone almost sounded like a whisper to even be heard from their distance.

"Weird," Gumball thought to himself; he was a regular there, and it was weird enough for him to be walking around, wearing a hospital gown, but seeing a girl, whom he doesn't recognize, and doing the same thing as he is doing, was much weirder than that.

"eh", Gumball didn't mind what just happened, thinking that he has at least gotten a good shot of that person.

* * *

Gumball took few more photographs around the hospital, before a nursed took him back inside.

While he was walking with the bandage nurse, he couldn't keep his curiosity away from that girl.

"So… is there a new patient getting a rehab here?" He asked.

"Huh?" The nurse replied, not knowing what Gumball was talking about.

"You know what? Never mind…" Gumball said, and the nursed shrugs it off, not thinking about any of it, since he still need to do a daily check-up on him.

The tests are just a normal thing for Gumball to do, things like eye test, blood test, and some other physical activities, to see if he's getting well.

A few moment's later, the nursed jotted down the results on her notebook; Gumball was unable to complete some of the physical activities.

He wasn't able to run, or walk normally without holding on something to balance himself.

"It's not today huh?" Gumball said.

The nursed tried to cheer him up by giving him a friendly hug, but it was way too friendly that it almost suffocated him.

"Gah, do you even want me to leave this hospital?" Gumball said, as he gasps for air.

She laughs it off, telling him to get some rest while she reports Gumball's status to the doctor.

Gumball went back to his room, passing by the other doctors, and nurses that were running around the hospital.

* * *

While on his way back, Gumball felt like someone is watching him from somewhere; he tried to play it cool, by pretending that he didn't noticed it

There girl from before is following him, but he didn't want to scare her away from him, so he plans to ambush her after turning to the corner.

It was time, and Gumball lured the girl to a secluded place where no one can see them.

Gumball quickly turned left even though it was hard for him to do that, but it was worth it.

The girl noticed it and quickly chased after him, but she didn't expect that Gumball was waiting for him to grab her.

"Boo" Gumball said, but as soon as he said that, his face went from being blue, to a hand shaped red.

The slap echoed through out the hall, but no one was there to see or even hear that sound.

Gumball quickly regretted his bad decision making, but there was nothing he can do now.

"No, please don't kill me" Gumball jokingly said.

"You idiot!" The girl immediately replied.

Gumball had no idea why, she slapped him or why was she following him in the first place.

"Uhmmm" Gumball didn't know what to say, but the girl quickly said.

"Give me the thingy" But that only made him more confused, since he didn't know what she was talking about.

Gumball fell on his knee, but he had another brilliant idea on his mind, he thought it might work "again".

"Look! What's that" Gumball pointed at the other direction, it made the girl look behind.

He crawled on all fours as fast as possible away from that crazy girl, but that only made her chased him more.

"Raaaaa" The girl shouted, as she runs towards Gumball, jumping on his back as if Gumball was a horse.

"Give it back, give it back, give it back" She said, while pounding on Gumball's back.

"No, not my back" Gumball said, as he fell like his back is getting crushed by a wrestler.

Footstep can be heard nearby, it was a familiar one; the same one as Gumball's nurse.

The nurse turned the corner, on where the incident is happening.

"Hello, I'm back-" The nursed said as she turns the corner, knowing that it was Gumball's voice that she's hearing.

"…" Everything went quiet, after the nurse arrived at the scene.

"Hiss~" The girl made a hissing sound and quickly run off.

"What was that…?" The nurse said.

"You tell me" Gumball added.

* * *

 **Hello, it's me again making another fanfic for Gumball. This one might be short though, like 5-6 chapters long, but I don't really know since I'm still at the process of making it.**

 **If you want to see the full illustration for this story, be sure to check this out.**

 **deviantart,com/sinofademon/art/Penny-Fitzgerald-765707697**

 **just change the , to . in-between deviantart and com, since fanfic doesn't accept direct links.**

 **Anyways I hope you like this story, bye :)**


	2. Chapter 2: As the night approaches

Chapter 2: As the night approaches

The nurse helped Gumball get back into his room, but Gumball kept on asking her if she really didn't saw the girl.

"Are you sure that I'm the only one you saw, back there?" He asked, but the nurse told him again and again, that the reason she went there, was because of the noise that he's making, and nothing else.

Gumball sat on his bed, and let the nurse took care of everything, but he suddenly remembered his camera.

There was a picture of her in that, and maybe if he showed it to his nurse, she'll recognize the girl in that photo.

Gumball turns his camera on, and scrolled through the previous pictures that he took.

He saw the one the he's been looking for, and held it up on the nurse's face.

"Ms. Markham! Here, look at her" He said, but the battery went off before she could see it.

Ms. Markham gave her a look, like she was saying to give it up and go to sleep.

Gumball decided to lay on his bed for a while, and think about what just happened.

It was a really weird day, but it made him felt like he was back to normal, rather than being in a hospital.

He drinks his medicines before resting his head on the pillow, slowly drifting into sleep.

* * *

Drowning, it's always been like this ever since he woke up.

It was that dream that caused him to wake up from his coma, but it's also the reason why he couldn't have a good night sleep.

Gumball immediately pours his medicines into his hands; he gulps it down in quick succession, and got off his bed.

It'll be long before he feels the effect of the medicines, so he opens the door of his room to take a walk outside, like he usually does.

He unplugs his camera from charging, before he forgets to bring it with him.

The hallway was illuminated with bright lights, and didn't looked like one of those hospital from horror film.

It took him a while before he got outside, since all the nurse greeted him on his way out.

"Going out again?" said one of the nurses.

He simply gave her a nod, and went on what he was doing.

It was cold outside, and the only light source with the exception of the hospital, was the moon.

It shunned brightly upon the dark streets of Elmore, it was a perfect opportunity to enjoy himself, once in a while.

* * *

While he is sitting on a bench enjoying the fresh air, which occasionally touches the fur on his face.

He felt a light tap on his right shoulder, coming from behind him, and when he looks to check who it is.

The girl was staring intently back at him, dark circles around her eyes; it almost seemed that she waited there for a long time.

It scared the crap out of Gumball, he had to check if he's dreaming of not, so he tried to poke the girl's cheek.

"Waaaahhh!" The girl shouted, and almost seemed that she had been woken up, after Gumball had touched her.

"Give it back" The girl said, as she intensely stared at Gumball.

Gumball had enough of this girl, he wanted to know the reason on why, and what caused her to follow him around like that.

"Can I ask you a question?" Gumball said.

The girl tilts her head, as she wonders what kind of question Gumball will ask her.

"Why did you run when I saw you back then? And why are you chasing me now?" Gumball said.

The wind stopped, and everything around them went silent for a while, as the girl turned her back, away from Gumball.

"I can't answer that" The girl said.

Gumball noticed that the clumsiness in her voice were gone, after he asked her that question.

"Can you delete the photo now?" The girl said, in a serious tone of voice.

Her attitude suddenly changed, as if she didn't want Gumball to know the reason why she did that.

"Oh, it was the photo huh? Sure, I'll delete it, just give me a sec" Gumball said, as he scuffled to get his camera.

He turned the power on, and proceed to make a copy of the picture, without the girl noticing it.

He hides the copy that he made on a folder, before giving it to the girl.

"Thank you" The girl says, as she scrolls over the photo's that Gumball have taken.

The camera made a beep sound, indicating that a photo has been deleted.

After deleting all of the photo that she could find herself in; the girl gave the camera back to Gumball, and left without saying a word.

Gumball thought that it was rude of her; to just leave without saying a word about it.

"Hey you!" Gumball shouted.

He tried to run towards the girl, but his legs are not in a good condition for him to run, and so, he accidentally trips himself.

The girl went back to check him; poking his with a stick, and shaking him over and over again.

"Are you alright?" The girl asked.

Gumball laughs, while his face is currently facing the cemented ground.

"I think it's rude to just delete someone's photo, without even knowing their name" Gumball says, as he tries to sit on his back.

"Gumball" He said, as he raised his right hand for a handshake, but the girl only laughed at him.

"Is my name that weird?" Gumball asked, but the girl shook her head, letting him know that it wasn't because of that.

The girl points her index finger towards Gumball's forehead, as she pushes it forward.

"Ouch" Gumball said, surprised.

"I think you should, go see a nurse first" The girl said.

Her attitude changed again, and it's making Gumball confused, on whether this girl is hiding something.

"I'll do that, thanks… uhmm?" Gumball said, as he tried to get her name.

"Penny" She says, smiling at him.

* * *

 **Sorry for the long wait, and I hope you enjoyed reading it :D**

 **-DeviantArt: Sinoafdemon**


	3. Chapter 3: Starry Night

Chapter 3: Starry night

A long minute of silence lingered around them, after they had introduced themselves to each other.

"Uhmm, would you like to get something over the vending machine?" Gumball said.

He attempted to break the awkwardness by offering Penny a drink, but she declined.

"No, I'm not allowed to drink, nor eat anything sweet" Penny said.

She didn't want to decline his kind offer, but she has her reasons on doing so.

They decided to sit on a bench for a while and look at the stars; Gumball keeps on taking more and more photos as the time goes on.

"Aren't you supposed to be in your room right now?" Penny asked.

Gumball snapped more photos even after hearing what Penny had said to him.

"I don't feel like sleeping, not until the medicine starts to take effect" Gumball said, as he took more photos of the stars.

Penny got more curios and wanted to know more about him, so she asked another question.

"What's with the photos that you're taking?" She said.

After hearing those words; the sound of Gumball's camera, suddenly stops.

Gumball puts the camera down on his lap, as he stares at the skies; appreciating life more than before.

"You see, I once tried to kill myself" Gumball said.

* * *

 _A flashback from a year ago_

Darwin was staring at the photos hanging on the walls of their room, that he shares with his brother.

"You really like bugs huh?" He said.

"Yeah…" Gumball replied, as he hanged a newly developed photo from his camera.

"Specially the dead ones…" Darwin added, he got no idea, on why would Gumball like this kind of things.

"Don't worry Darwin, I promised that this will be the last" Gumball said.

Darwin noticed that his brother is a bit more different than before, he was… happy, rather than his usual mood.

"You're acting a little weird" Darwin said, worried about his brother's condition.

"Am I not allowed to be happy? Anyway, I'm gonna go out for a walk, see you later" Gumball said, as he smiled at him.

 _End of flashback_

* * *

"After that, I tried to kill myself" Gumball said.

Gumball explained everything to Penny; telling her that he felt alienated and afraid at that time, like there are eyes around him, that watches every move that he makes.

He told her that the camera became his new set of eyes, as he took those photos of dead bugs; reminding himself what he'll look like, if he decided to disappear one day.

But it didn't work for him; in the end, he cherished those photos, and envied the state of those bugs.

Dead, yet peaceful; it was that day when he told himself that he wanted to be like them.

He had enough, and decided to end his life at that very same day.

"Sorry for telling you all of this" Gumball said.

She felt sorry for Gumball, and apologized immediately, as she never intended to make him feel uncomfortable.

"No, you didn't have to apologize for it" Gumball said, as he laughed awkwardly.

"I mean, I can't even remember how I survived" Gumball added.

He then told her that all he could remember were the sound of sirens, and silhouettes of people that gathered around him.

But before all those fuzzy memories, there was this was one single thing that had been stuck with him.

"Someone saved me that day, but I can't remember who" Gumball stated.

Gumball holds his camera, pointing it towards the stars.

He continued on what he was doing, but he still hadn't answered Penny's question.

"And the photos…?" Penny said.

"This was supposed to be a rehabilitation thing" Gumball laughed as he told her that.

Penny didn't like how Gumball answered her questions, he could have been straight forward, but he didn't.

Penny stands up on from the bench, and tells Gumball that she's leaving, but after taking two steps away from him; Gumball muttered the real reason why.

"I wanted to show them to that person" Gumball said.

Gumball lets out a long sigh.

"I want to let that person know, that i didn't waste the chance that the he/she gave me" Gumball added.

Penny did not turn to face him, even after hearing his answers.

"I see" Penny quietly muttered.

She continues walking back to her room, but Gumball notices that Penny is taking a different path than him.

"See you tomorrow?" Gumball shouted at her.

With all her remaining energy, Penny turns to face Gumball for the last time, giving him a warm smile as she goes on her way inside the hospital.

* * *

Gumball stayed outside for a good one hour, he almost fell asleep at the bench, but he couldn't stop thinking about that girl.

He thinks that she is hiding something from him, and he to wants what it is.

it felt unfair to him, that he's the only one who told a story.

He decided that it was time for him to head back in his room, and think about everything that had happened, tomorrow.

It was the same exact routine when he headed back to his room.

Nurses greeted him, asked him, and told him to be more careful when going outside at night.

Since his family only visits him during Saturday, when they're not busy; he felt lonely being all by himself.

Gumball opened the shelf on the side of his bed, taking out the medicines that had been prescribed to him.

He took a glass of water and drank the medicine that came from the bottle of sleeping pills.

"I guess that medicine from before should be able to cancel out those nightmares" He muttered, as he slowly covered himself with a blanket.

"1, 2, 3" Gumball thought.

He tries counting sheep's inside his head, and slowly begins to fall asleep.

* * *

"I'm drowning again, slowly falling to the depths of this lake"

Gumball reached his hands into the light, and a silhouette of hand grabbed him.

* * *

 **Thank you for reading this chapter, and I hope you guys stick around until the end :D**


	4. Chapter 4: The real me

Chapter 4: The real me

Gumball woke up from another nightmare, a feeling that he couldn't get rid of; a memory of him, struggling for his own life.

He took another medicine, and readied himself for his daily check-up.

"Knock-Knock, your favorite nurse is here"

A bandage looking nurse, came into Gumball's room to conduct check on him.

"Hey, Ms. Markham" said Gumball, in a low tone.

Markham noticed that Gumball is not in his usual mood, so he tried to cheer him up.

"Why don't we walk outside first?" said Ms. Markham.

Joan guided Gumball outside the hospital, and let him took photos before for moment.

She couldn't help, but notice that Gumball seems to be looking for someone, his head turning left and right.

"Who are you looking for?" She said.

"That girl showed up again" Gumball said.

Joan got curios about this said girl, and asked more questions about her.

"What does she look like?" Joan asked.

Gumball stopped taking photos, and seemed to be looking for something, in his camera's folder.

"where, where, where, AHA!" Gumball said in enthusiasm.

He puts the camera up, in front of Joan's face to see what the girl looks like.

"Who's that? I've never seen her in this hospital, but she seems familiar…. What's her name?" Joan asked.

"Penny, I don't know what's her last name is though" said Gumball.

Joan seems to be thinking about something inside her head, like she's trying to remember someone from her memories.

"Ackk, I got nothing, but it feels like I've seen her somewhere before" Joan said.

Gumball puts down his camera, and thought that Penny might not show up this time.

"You're fine now?" Joan asked.

Gumball sighs, as he walks with Joan, on their way back inside the hospital.

* * *

"Anddd… done" said Joan.

She just finished Gumball's check-up, and let Gumball leave, and do his stuff.

"Thanks, Ms. Markham" Gumball says as he waves goodbye, while exiting the door.

After seeing him leave the room, Markham immediately rummages through her old files; looking for the name "Penny".

"P-p-Penny! Here we go, they look exactly the same"

Markham skimmed through Penny's information, but it was almost as blank as paper.

She found it weird that the only thing on that piece of paper, was her first name, the date that she got confined, and some of her body measurement.

There wasn't anything written there, that state what her ailment was, and only stated that Penny got discharged after being there in 1 day.

"So, why is she still here?" Joan thought.

The door to her room suddenly opens, it was one of her co-workers.

The nurse seems to be in a hurry; she took a deep breath before speaking to Joan.

"Mr. Fitzgerald needed you in his office" The nurse said.

Joan immediately complied, and hurried towards to the Doctor's office.

She didn't want the him to get mad at her, since Mr. Fitzgerald is the owner of the hospital that she works in; she could get fired if he gets mad at her, for being a slowpoke.

* * *

Gumball was already in his room, when he noticed that he forgot his camera back at the nurse's office.

He decided to go back there and grab it; he was sure that it was on top of Ms. Markham's desk.

"Hello?" Gumball knocked before opening the door, but there's nobody in there.

He went ahead, and walked towards Markham's desk, to see if his stuff is still there.

"Ah, here it is…" Gumball quickly found his camera, but after lifting it up; he noticed that the desk was littered with patient's file.

"What is this?" Gumball took one of the folders and opened it.

He saw what's inside of Penny's file; there wasn't really anything into it, but Gumball had a hunch.

Gumball tried to look for his own file, luckily it was just besides Penny's file.

"We got confined at the same day, but she got out a day after…" Gumball muttered.

He had a feeling that Penny is somehow connected to him, but he needed more clues before confirming it.

* * *

 _Inside the Fitzgerald's office_

"So, is that kid doing fine?" The man in a suit and tie with a shell looking body, asked Markham about the patient, that she's currently assigned to take care of.

"He's getting better and better, and If this keeps up; we can discharge him in a week or so" said Markham.

"Good, make sure that you present me the files after you finish your shift" said Patrick.

The phone on Patrick's desk suddenly rings, and he quickly answers it; turning his chair, to the left side.

"What!" Patrick shouted, as she signals Markham to leave his office.

Markham, stood up from her chair, and went towards the door, but before she could exit the office; she heard what the guy on the other line said.

"I'm afraid, Penny's condition is getting worse and worse"

She closes the door, before Mr. Fitzgerald noticed that she heard what was happening on the phone.

"Could it be?" Markham muttered, as she headed towards the nurse's office.

* * *

It's already 8:00 pm, and Gumball decided to take another walk outside, in hopes of seeing Penny again.

He waited outside the hospital, at the same exact location where they talked about his life.

There were questions that he wanted her to answer, he wanted clarification, he wanted closure.

"I should have died back then" Gumball muttered.

After saying that, he felt a light tap on his right shoulders, and after looking who it was

An elegant looking girl, with a smile on her face that can almost illuminate the dark of the night, sits beside him.

"Are you still thinking of dying?" Penny said, as she looked at Gumball's face.

Penny snagged Gumball's camera, and played around with it; taking photos of the stars, and lastly a photo of Gumball's face.

Gumball noticed that Penny isn't wearing a hospital gown anymore; she's wearing casual clothes, but Gumball didn't bother to ask why.

"You should do what you want while you still can" Penny said, as she pointed the camera towards Gumball's face.

"I once risked my life, for someone else's life" Penny added.

But the looks on Gumball's face, changes; he doesn't know what to feel, and suddenly spouted some non-sense.

"I didn't ask for your help" He said.

At that moment, Gumball felt like he was a jerk for saying that, but he couldn't help it.

Deep inside, he never wanted someone to save him from drowning.

He was done with his life, even his family had enough of him.

They spent tons of money, fixing all of his mischievous deeds, as they shallowed their pride to apologize for the things that Gumball had caused.

No wonder why they haven't visited him that much.

"You think that life is precious? Full of candies and rainbows?" Gumball said, even though he wanted to stop, he couldn't stop himself from getting mad at her.

"You should have let me die back then" Gumball shouted, but Penny took it all, she didn't say a word, and instead; she hugged Gumball, knowing that he's suffering.

"If I were you, I wouldn't throw away my life, just like that" Penny says, as she breaks away the hug.

Gumball didn't understand if Penny was insulting him, or was envying him when she said that.

"Well, I should go back now" Penny said, as she stood up from the bench.

"I'm s-" Gumball couldn't get the words out of his mouth.

"Goodbye" Penny said, as she walks away from Gumball.

* * *

 **Thanks for reading this chapter, I'm getting a lot more busier in real life, so thank you for keeping up on me :D**


	5. Chapter 5: Two kinds of heart

Chapter 5: Two kinds of heart

Markham was checking up on Gumball, when suddenly he brought the subject about Penny.

"So, did you find anything about Penny?" Gumball asked.

Markham, thought that it would be good if she tells Gumball what happened in this hospital, about a year ago.

"Well you see, I recently remembered who that girl was" said Markham.

Hearing what Markham had said, Gumball moved a little closer to her; he wanted to know everything.

"She's the daughter of Mr. Fitzgerald, the owner of this hospital. It was before the accident that I saw her" She said.

"So, what happened?" Gumball said.

"It was the first time I saw her with her dad, they got into the car, and got back inside an ambulance… and you were with them" Markham said.

"Don't be shocked by this news; she might not show it, but I think I've heard that her conditions are getting worse"

Gumball stood up from his seat, surprised.

"What? What caused it?" He shouted.

"I don't know either, but I think it'd be good if you're the one who ask her about it" Markham said.

Gumball finished his checkup and, immediately went outside to look for Penny.

He waited there for hours until the sun went down, but there wasn't a single sign of Penny, being there.

He decided to go back into his room, and get some rest.

* * *

Gumball went outside earlier than usual, expecting to see Penny to be there.

"What am I expecting?" Gumball muttered after seeing that she wasn't outside.

A thought came into his mind, he remembered Markham telling him about Penny's father.

He quickly went to Markham's office, and asked her to escort him in the Owner's office.

Markham was hesitant at first, but she still agreed to help him; since Markham treated Gumball like her own son.

"Alright, but I'll just escort you there. You'll be the one who'll do the talking, while I wait for you outside". Markham said.

Gumball nodded, and they went their way to the Patrick's office.

Markham knocked on the door, before the voice on the other side told them to enter.

"Uhmm sir, this kid wants to have a word with you" Markham said.

As Gumball took a step into the office, the atmosphere changed drastically; it was as if, he stepped into a purgatory.

The ominous presence that Patrick is giving off, is enough to make anyone who comes near him, nervous.

"So, what do you want?" Patrick asked.

Gumball took a deep breath, as he tries to calm himself down.

"It's about the accident that I, and your daughter was involved in" Gumball said.

Patrick gave Markham a signal to leave the room, leaving Gumball in his care.

As soon as the door shut closed, Gumball's heart begins to race faster than before.

Gumball gulps, as he waited for Patrick to answer his question.

He noticed that Patrick seems to be looking for something inside his drawer, but he doesn't have a clue what it was.

* * *

Patrick dropped something on the ground, but it didn't make a sound.

He was able, but the horn that was poking out of his head almost flipped the table when he got back on his seat.

"Ahhh- hahahaha, sorry about that" Patrick said.

The atmosphere that Gumball was so worried about, suddenly changed into a goofy one.

He didn't expect anything like that at all, a big guy, being clumsy; it reminded him of his dad, and wondered what they're currently doing while he was away from home.

"You see, I love my daughter more than anything in this world" Patrick said.

His words were full of emotions, it was the most genuine thing that a child could ask for.

"She always been so cheery, even though her mother died after she was born" He added.

Gumball stayed silent, as he listens to Patrick's story; not saying a single word.

"But life has been unfair for her" Patrick said.

He showed Gumball a picture of Penny, playing with sands at a park.

"Ain't my daughter, just beautiful?" He said.

Gumball nodded, but he still doesn't get what he meant by the word "unfair".

"It was the day that she got out from the hospital, after a blood transplant" Patrick said.

Patrick paused, he was tried to stopped his emotions from over flowing; he tried, but he wasn't able to do so.

"Do you know how it feels to know that your daughter, will not be able to live her life to the fullest?" He said, as the tears began to come out of his eyes.

"I was the one who diagnosed her, I was the one… She also had the same disease as her mother, it was hereditary" Patrick said.

He wiped the tears that were coming out of his eyes, as he took a depth breath, in order to calm himself.

"She was born with a weak set of lungs, along with her heart. It means that she'll only be able to live, until 20" Patrick added.

It was at that moment, that Gumball spoke for himself.

"How old is she now?" He asked.

Patrick stood up, and took the calendar behind him; showing Gumball the day that has a red circle along with the letters "Penny's b-day" written on it.

"She's currently 16 and she'll turn 17 the day after tomorrow" Patrick said.

"So, was I the reason why her life span got shortened?" Gumball said.

"What?" Patrick didn't know what he was talking about, and he didn't know how to answer.

"Tell me, tell me please… Please… is it because of me, that your daughter's condition got worst?" He shouted.

Gumball was crying, he felt pity, not only on Penny, but for himself.

All this time he took advantage of life, he didn't see what it really was; for him, life has no meaning, no purpose, but that's where he was wrong.

He felt envy towards Penny, who didn't hated life for what it was, and instead she embraced it for what it gave her.

"Just tell me… please" Gumball cried, as he pounds Patrick's chest.

Patrick gave him a hug, he felt that he needed to, he felt that this kid didn't deserve what he's feeling.

"I was also there when it happened" Patrick muttered.

Gumball wiped the tears that were coming out of his eyes, he didn't fully understand what Patrick meant.

"I was the one who took Penny on a trip that day" Patrick said.

Patrick walked towards the window, taking yet another deep breath as he revealed what happened.

"It was supposed to be a fun little family trip, but I was so busy answering a call that I didn't noticed her jumped off the bridge" Patrick said as he clinches his fist.

"If only I was with her when that happened, maybe I could have been the one who saves you" Patrick added.

Gumball made his decision, he came up with an idea that could help Penny live a little longer.

"Take my heart, and lungs" He shouted.

Patrick quickly turned to face him, and looked at Gumball straight to the eye.

"Are you serious?" Patrick asked.

"Yes" Gumball replied.

Patrick laughs, after hearing those words that came out from Gumball's mouth.

"That's ridiculous, Bwahahaha. Why don't you cherish your life even more? I mean it's my daughter that gave you the second chance" Patrick said.

"And even if you die, and donates your organs to her; she'll die during the operation, since you can't just replace both parts at the same time" He added.

Gumball wasn't really satisfied with the answer that he was given, he wanted to do more than that.

"Is there anything I can do to help her?" Gumball asked.

Patrick smiles, as he spouts a request that may sound a bit selfish to Gumball.

"Be with her, until she breaths her last breath"

* * *

 **This story might end in 1-2 chapters, and after that I'll be taking a long break from writing.**

 **I had fun reading everyone's comment, and I'm thankful that somewhere in this world, that someone liked what I'm doing.**

 **That sounded cheesy, yes? But I'm really grateful to have you guys be part of my life, and after I finish this story, I'll try to pick myself up, from what I'm currently in.**

 **Thanks for reading, and keeping up with my bullshit :D**


	6. Chapter 6: Life's like a game

Chapter 6: Life's like a game

"Wha- why?" Gumball was surprised on what Patrick had told him.

"What do you mean by that?" Gumball asked.

Patrick looked at him straight to the eyes, and uttered the words that he'd been keeping all to himself.

"She might not make it until next week" Patrick said.

Gumball gave a slight laugh in disbelief, he wanted confirmation that it was only a terrible dad joke, but it wasn't.

"I've been letting her do what she wanted to do, letting her be free for as long as she wants to" Patrick said.

"So please, go to her; and make her experience life to the fullest extent" Patrick added, as he holds Gumball's hands.

Even though Patrick doesn't fully know Gumball, he knows that he could entrust her daughter to him.

It was as if, he saw himself into Gumball; a reflection of who he once was.

"I understand" Gumball replied.

* * *

Gumball exited that office, with every information that he needed to know.

Patrick told him where Penny was staying at; it was in a building on the other side of the street.

And as for the release papers, it was Markham who manages it; Gumball asked for a favor to not tell his family about this situation.

Gumball was able to walk normally, but it will still take some time for him to run with his legs.

He arrived at the front of the house, it was a tall apartment building; and Penny is currently staying at the 8th floor.

He walks in and he was shocked on how bright and clean the lobby of the building was.

It was littered with luxurious couches; bonsai's and the place were airconditioned.

Gumball was greeted by an attendant who wears a red uniform, that almost looks like a queen's guard clothing.

"Good Morning Sir" One of the guards greeted Gumball, but he only nodded in return.

He was felt anxious on how he looks like to them, but he never bothered to stop and think about that.

Instead, he quickly took off to the elevator, and looked at the paper that Patrick gave to him.

"Floor 8, Room 8f.. 8f.." Gumball muttered as he walks inside the elevator, but was quickly greeted by another guard who operates it.

"Which floor sir?" the guy said.

"8" Gumball replied quickly, with a nervous sounding voice, he felt a drop of a cold sweat drip on the side of his head.

It was cold inside, yet he still couldn't stop himself from getting nervous.

*Ding* there was a sound that notified them that the elevator is stopping on floor.

Gumball readies himself to get out, but when he was about to leave that cramped out box, he was quickly stopped by the guard that was with him.

"Uhmm sir, I think you're going on the wrong floor" The guy said, as he points up to the red bright light that says the floor number.

"Ahehe…" Gumball laughs nervously, as the door of the elevator slowly shuts off.

*Ding* Another sound notifies them that the elevator stopped on the current floor that the light was showing.

"8" Gumball muttered, he is now sure that it was the right floor this time.

"Good luck" The guard says as Gumball walks out of the elevator.

* * *

Gumball looked around for a while, and immediately found the door that leads to Fitzgerald apartment unit.

He knocks on the door and waited, he knocks again but there's no answer.

He waited there for almost an hour and now worries about what could happened to her.

A guy pizza delivery guy walks pass by Gumball, he noticed that the guy pushed some square thing on the opposite side of the hallway, and the door immediately opens.

Gumball looks at the front door and noticed a bell looking gold button, and pressed it.

He can hear a noise coming from inside, like a tone of a song being played in parts.

The door opened and he was immediately greeted by a familiar face.

"Hello? Gumball? Ka-ah, come in" Penny said.

Gumball smile as he steps inside the room, but that smile quickly turned into frustration after he saw how large the room were; no wonder why Penny didn't heard the knock.

Gumball wanted to punch himself in the face for not noticing the doorbell earlier, and not realizing that Penny might not hear the knock.

"Gah" Gumball let out a quite shriek in frustration.

Penny turned around only to notice Gumball, still smelling and following behind her.

"Take a sit on there, I'll make some tea" Penny says while pointing at the direction of the living room.

"No, you shouldn't bother" Gumball quickly said.

"Let me get straight to the point" Gumball added.

Penny's attention was fully focused at him, as she waited for him to speak.

Gumball took a long deep breath before telling her what he wanted to say.

"You wanna go out with me?" Gumball said, he almost choked at the end of his sentence but managed to pull it off.

"Eh?" Penny said with a blank face.

…

Penny slowly walks like a penguin towards the shelf, that contains various ingredients.

She took out the bag of tea and pour some boiling water into its plastic bag, and stirs it with toothbrush.

Gumball just blankly stare at what Penny is doing, and did not stopped her.

"Was I asleep for that long? Is this the new way to make a tea?" Gumball thought to himself.

"Are you ok?" Gumball asked.

"so, i was asking if you would like to go outside, and go to the arcade" Gumball added.

Penny quickly snapped back into reality, and stopped what she was doing.

"Oh, that go out" She said but with a disappointed face.

…

Gumball realized what Penny was thinking about, and thought that this is the first time he asked a girl out.

He slowly walks towards the counter like a penguin and quickly drank whatever that Penny had made.

"Blurg" and quickly spits it out.

"Are you okay now?" Penny asked.

Gumball nodded, and Penny laughs on how stupid they are.

"Well it was the first time that someone asked me out" Penny smiles.

"It was my first time asking someone out" Gumball said, as they both laughed on how stupid the idea was.

* * *

Both of them arrived at the arcade by a car, on which the Fitzgerald's driver was driving.

They got out of the car, and Penny told the driver that she'll just call him when they are ready to go home.

Gumball only realized by now that it might be a bad idea to bring a girl into an arcade.

"I really haven't really thought about that well on where we should go, but if you like, we can go somewhere, rather than this place" Gumball said.

But Penny only made a pouty face, as he looks straight to Gumball's eye while leaning towards him.

"Are you saying that I don't like games, and I'm bad at them?" Penny said.

Gumball looks on the side, as he scratches his cheek with his index finger.

"Ehehe…" Gumball laughs awkwardly, but Penny pulled him inside, and went into the cashier to exchange some tokens.

"Did you just buy two bags full of tokens?" Gumball raised his voice in confusion.

The bag was as big as his head and had the weight of a baby.

Penny gave Gumball the other bag, and challenged Gumball into a battle, a battle of who's better at the arcade.

"The first one who buys the huge stuff toy wins" Penny said, as she pointed at the huge teddy bear, that is the size of a full-grown woman, hanging on the stall by the cashiers.

"Oh it's on" Gumball said.

Gumball and Penny took a seat in front of an arcade game console; it was a VS game.

They both decided to play the same game at the same time, to see who's better at Street Foughters.

The console has an animated icon on its screen that says, insert coins.

Penny was the one who put a coin inside, and then Gumball followed up.

"Choose your foughter!" The voice came from the arcade game, indicating the picking phase of the game.

Gumball picked a used catboy, while Penny picked Robot Fairy.

The round started slow, as they both back off from each other; as they try to see which button does thing.

After a few seconds of testing out the controls, Gumball was the first one who moved and attack.

Gumball thought that he got the upper hand, but after attacking, Gumball didn't expect Penny to block his attack.

Penny then counter attacked, which send Gumball's character in the air.

After catboy was sent flying, Penny's did an air combo that rendered Gumball's character immobile until it hit the ground.

The moment that catboy hit the ground, was the moment his health bar went to zero.

"Win!" The announcer said, Gumball didn't expect Penny to be this good in this game.

"How?" Gumball said, looking at Penny while still shocked from the skill that he just witnessed.

"Well, video games are the only thing that keeps me away from boredom" Penny said.

As the time passed by, they both of them didn't noticed that they were just playing that single game in the whole arcade.

There was now a group of people gathering behind them, and Gumball lose every round.

"Win!" the announcer said, and a count down that says "Continue?" appeared on the screen.

Gumball took another coin from the bag, and noticed that there's only one token left.

If he wanted to win this game, he needed to cheese his way to victory.

The people were cheering for Gumball, since they saw every battle, and they knew that he was such an underdog.

The round starts, and Gumball slowly moves forward to Penny's character.

Robot fairy rushes towards catboy, but that was a mistake.

Catboy quickly crouch and did a low kick, Robot fairy went down and as so a she tried to stand up, catboy did another low kick that brought her down immediately.

Gumball repeated the process over and over, until Penny's health bar reached zero.

The crowd was now booing behind Gumball's back, but he just laughed it off.

Gumball won that round, he stood up and said "In your face!" to Penny, as he did some sort of victory dance.

Penny just laughed it off, and the people that were watching them, left before Gumball could even finished that match.

"So… about the tickets…" Penny said.

Gumball realized what they have done, that game doesn't spew out tickets, it's basically a video game.

"Eheheh" Gumball laughed as he scratched the back of his head.

"Well, since I lose many rounds to you; I should be the one buying that Stuffed toy" He added.

The time passed by, as they explore more various places in the arcade.

Gumball insisted on carrying the stuffed toy on his back, around his neck the whole time they were there.

The night came, and the driver arrived back to pick them up.

They both got in the car, but for some reason they didn't utter a single word on their way home.

It's like there was something in that silence that made them happy, they felt connected; they were happy with how things were.

* * *

The car stopping was their signal that they arrived back at the condominium.

"So, this is it huh? Gumball said to Penny.

The driver opened the door on Penny's side, while Gumball took out the huge stuffed toy that he bought.

"So… see you tomorrow?" Gumball said with a worry in his voice.

"Yeah" Penny replied, giving Gumball a big smile.

"Ohh before I forgot, could you take this to her room?" Gumball handled over the stuffed toy to the driver, and lets out a huff sound as he carried it towards the guy.

"Bye" Gumball was the one who said it, followed with the exact same word by Penny.

Both of them headed towards their direction, with a smile painted on their faces.

Gumball went back to the hospital and told Patrick everything that had happen, and since they were keeping everything as a secret.

Gumball went back to his room as a regular patient.

* * *

 **Hey DemonSin here! Sorry for not uploading sooner. For some reason, I wanted this chapter to be longer, but I ended up procrastinating for a long time, and in the end; I only came up with this. But with this chapter finish, I'll get back on writing and finishing this story, thanks for understanding :**

 **If you want to keep up with what I do, I recommend following me on my DeviantArt with the username "Sinofademon" and for all my Gumball related post, follow me on TAWOG amino with the username of "DemonSin".**

 **That's all and thank you for reading :)**


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